Japanese Knotweed a Growing Problem!
Japanese Knotweed is a non-native, invasive plant that can cause significant damage to buildings, roads and services. First introduced to the UK in the mid 19th Century by Victorian gardeners the plant has become a 21st. century headache for Landowners and Developers.
Relevant legislation is The Control of Pesticides Regulation 1986; the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, that make it an offence to plant or cause to spread the plant. The act of moving soil contaminated with the plants or parts of the plant, from one site to another is deemed “to cause to spread” Under both the Environmental Protection Act 1990 and the Hazardous Waste Regulations 2005, untreated Knotweed is not classed as hazardous. However, any material containing Knotweed which has been treated with certain herbicides may be classified as hazardous and the Waste Management Licensing Regulations 1994 apply.
The plant spreads via underground stems (rhizomes) that can extend to, and beyond, a depth of at least 2m and 7m horizontally. A thumbnail-sized segment of rhizome is enough to propagate growth of the plant; hence great care is needed in disposing of the plant. Treatment Once Japanese Knotweed has been identified on a site it will be necessary to produce a Japanese Knotweed Management Plan. The Plan must state how the knotweed infestation will be dealt with. Various site specific factors, including site area, ecology and groundwater regime, will determine how the Knotweed can be treated. Treatment methods may include application of herbicides, continual cutting, digging and dumping, and burial. With landfill tax and a potentially very large volume of rhizome-contaminated soil, the costs of digging and disposal are likely to be prohibitive. The most effective and most commonly used treatment is the application of herbicides. As most herbicides require living foliage to take affect the most effective time for treatment is from July to September. It is, therefore very important to plan ahead and not leave matters if the most cost effective solution is to be viable. Thomas Consulting have dealt with a number of sites where our early identification of Japanese Knotweed has lead to timely treatment and prevented unnecessary delays and costs to projects.
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